Back gauge mechanism for shoe sewing machines



June 27,' 19'33.

E. Ej WINKLEY BACK GAUGE MEcHANIsM FOR lSHOE SEWING MACHINESy Filed Feb'. 14, 1929 2-'Sh-eebS-Sheet 1 June 27,1933. l E. E. wlNKLl-:Y l' 1,915,909

BACK GAUGE MECHANISM FOR SHOE SEWING MACHINES Filed Feb. 14, 1929 2 Sheecs-SheetI 2 Patented June 27, 1933 UNiTen STATES ERASTUS E. WINKLEY, .OF LYNNLMASSACHUSETTS, .ASSIGl-NOR TO UNITED "SHOEy MA- PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, .A CORPORATION OF NEW y vroriiivrnieif' conPoRiiTioN, or .innsEY vPATENT `orricii: Y

BACK GAUGE MECHANISM Fonsri'on SEWING MACHINES 'Y Application ledrFebruary 14, 1829. Serial No. 339,883.

The present invention relates; to sewing machines of the type employed to sew -together the upper and the sole of a turn shoe, or the upper, insole and welt of a welt-shoe.

- It has especial reference to the meansem- In the forms of back gauge actuating mech-v anism which have entered into common use the parts have been heavily constructedand rigidly combined. Variations in the thickness of the work at various points in the shoe have brought about the adoption of spring means vfor bringing the back gauge forward into contact with the shoe, with the result that through strengthening the spring in order to actuate the back gauge with sufficient rapidity, the back gauge has been madek to pound or hammer against the shoe during the sewing` operation to an extent making -it diflicult for the operator to hold the shoe in proper position.

The principal object of the invention is to provide an improved back gauge mechanism which will act Without causing this objectionable pounding against the shoe.

To this end., the invention comprises a back gauge mechanism of a. design permitting the use of lightly constructed parts and arranged to swing the back gauge in an arc so as to reduce the force ofthe blow against the shoe,`

with the locking and retracting lmechanism entirely disconnected from the back gauge while the latter advances, to prevent their contributing to the inertia of the parts.

Another object of the invention is to causey the backy gauge to follow the path of the needle, so that the back gauge will encounter the shoe in the same relation to the needle regardless of variations in the thickness of the combined with a guidewav serving to make the engaging end of the back gauge perform as if turning about the center of swingl of the needle.

-Another object of the. invention is to provide a back gauge organization in which there will be nobreakage of parts such as has yI'esulted from wear ofthe cams and the parts actuated by them, withiconsequent overlapping ofthe necessarily close timing of their actions causing the back gauge retracting devices to act while the back gauge has still remained fixed by its locking devices.

With this end in view, the force applied to retract the back gauge is delivered through yielding means so that if the retraction should be attempted before the locking means has released the back gauge, thevmoving of the back gauge will vbe postponed until such release without harmful strain on the parts.

The present invention also consists in the devices, combinations, and arrangement-s of parts hereinafter described and claimed, the advantages of which will be obvious to those Jlrilled in theart from the following descripion.

The several features of the present inven-k tion will be 'clearly understood from an inspection of the accompanying drawings, in which: e f

.,Fig. 1 is a View inside elevation of a turnshoe inseam sewing machine embodyingsaid features. in their preferred forms; Fig. 2 is a side view of certain parts shown in Fig. 1 onl a larger scale, illustrating the relation of the shoe, the needle, the back gauge and its actuating and locking mechanism while f rangement and mode of operation, except as hereinafter described, as the corresponding parts of the welt and turn machine disclosed in Patent No. 1,108,560 granted August 25, v1914 to A. Eppler for Shoe sewing machine. Reference may be had to said patent for a full and complete description of the parts not described herein.

The needle 2 is mounted in the usual manner on the needle segment 4, swinging about a center formed by the pivot 6 fixed in the frame of the machine and actuated in the usual manner, the said needle segment 4 being supported in its movement by a web 8 fixed to the framework of the machine. The back gauge 10 has its engaging end of forked design permitting the latter to bear against the shoeat either side of the needle which passes between the prongs thereof. Tt is pivotally combined at 12 with the end of an arm 14 which is swung from a pivot 16 in the machine frame above the pivot 6 of the needle segment. The back gauge 10 has a rearward and upward integral extension 18 in which is fixed a pin 2O working in a guideway 22 formed in the rearward and upward extension of the web 8. This guideway is so contrived with respectto the radius and pivot of the arm 14 carrying the back gauge as to act as a cam path causing the engaging end of the back gauge to perform as if it were swung about the center of rotation of the needle segment, and to follow exactly the path of movement of the needle. Through this arrangement, the relationship between the back gauge and the needle remains the same throughout the entire stitching operation, the prongs of the back gauge encountering the upper at exactlyv the level of the needle at each successive stitch regardless of the variation in the thickness of the work at different points in the circuit of the shoe. Since there is no change in the relative level at which the impact of the back gauge falls, no varying turning impulse is imparted to the shoe to disturb its manipulation by the operator.

The improved means for actuating the back gauge in its movements towards and from the shoe, and for locking it in close contact with the shoe, comprise a light spring 24 coiled around a bolt 26 fixed in the retaining plate 28 of the back rest slide and having one end extending out tangentially to engage with the protruding end of the pivot pin 12 which unites the back gauge with its swinging arm 14, such light spring combining with the effects of gravity to swing said arm 14 downwardly and forwardly and bring the back gauge against the shoe.

The locking means for fixing the back gauge in the exact position at which it encounters the shoe, comprise a ratchet 30 formed integrally upon the extremity of arm 14, and engaged by pawls 32 pivotally mounted by a screw 34 upon the rearward extension of web 8, the pawls being brought into contact with the teeth of ratchet 30 by light springs 36 suitably combined with their tail portions 38. A plurality of pawls of slightly dili'erent lengths is employed in familiar manner to give locking engagement of the back gauge against the work without back lash. Means for unlocking the back gauge to permit its retraction at the proper time comprise a pin 37 engaging with the tail portions 38 of the said pawls to lift them out of engagement with the ratchet 30, said pin being fixed in the end of a lever 40, pivoted at 42 upon the machine frame. This lever 40 is actuated through link 44 by a cam lever 46 mounted upon a stud 48 and vibrated by the engagement of its roll 50 with the disc cam 52 fixed upon the shaft 54 of the machine.

Means for retracting the back gauge subsequent to its being unlocked, to remove it from contact with the shoe during the feeding 'movement of the latter', comprise a ratchet 56 upon the downwardly and rearwardly facing edge of a portion 58 formed integrally upon the swinging arm 14 a short distance above its lower extremity, and a plurality of pawls 60 adapted to engage therewith, said pawls being pivoted at 62 to one end of a bell crank 64 pivoted at 66 upon the machine frame, suitable springs 68 being provided to press the pawls into engagement with ratchet V56. The bell crank 64 at its upper end has a sleeve 7 0 pivotally combined therewith as indicated at 72, and through said sleeve is passed a loosely fitting pull-rod 74 to which endwise motion fore-and-aft the machine is imparted periodically through the connection of its rear end at 76 with a cam lever 78, pivoted at 80 and actuated through engagement of its roll 82 with one of the usual disc cams 52.

The end of the pull-rod 74 is threaded, and equipped with a nut 84 which encounters one end of the sleeve as the pull-rod is moved forwardly by its cam lever, and rocks the bell-crank 64 in a direction carrying its pawls 60 idly down over the teeth of their coacting ratchet 56. At the end of the pullrod is a second nut 86, and between said nut and the forward end of the sleeve 70 is confined an expanding spiral spring 88, surrounding the pull-rod, and acting as a yielding medium for transmitting force imparted to said sleeve upon rearward movement of the pull-rod to actuate bell crank 64 in the direction to raise the pawls 60 while in engagement with their ratchet 56, and thus to swing the arm 14 upwardly and rearwardly to retract the back gauge 10 from the shoe. This safety spring 88 provides for postponement of the retraction, if necessary, and thus preventsv damage or breakage of the parts of the mechanism in the event that through Wear or for other reasons vthe retracting ac- To release the retractingpawls 60, in order to permitthe spring 24 to advance the back` gauge into contact with the work from its retracted position, said retracting pawls have at their free ends the portions 90 adapted to be engaged by aheel 92 formed onA the under side of the needle guard cam lever 94. This needle guard cam lever is actuated, as the needle starts forward towards the work, in a direction causing said heel92 to encounter the portions 90 and force the pawls 60 out of engagement with the ratchet 56. The back gauge, thus released, advances with the needle, strikingv the shoe in close proximity to and at each side of the point of impact of the needle and just an instant ahead of the needle point.l It arrives intime tolay the lining, in the case of a turn shoe,v closely against the form of the last so th at the hole in the lininfr formed by the entryTV ot' the needle will be in the properaligiiment with the needle hole in the upper and no Vdistortion or puckering or scraping v ot the lining bythe needle will'occur. -V f y Thesprin'g S8 performs lits yielding'iunction in another connection also.V The illustrated machine is arranged, as is customary?, to be turned backwardly at the end of the sewing operation to release-thetension and bring the various parts to restaty the proper point to permit the removal of the shoe., The timing ofthe various parts is necessarily such as to carry the retracting pawls 60 upwardly, during thisreverse movement of the machine, before the heel 92 'on the needle guide cam lever has swung upward out of the way. It is necessary to keep these pawls engaged, in order to haveV the machine come to rest with the back gauge retracted. Through the use of the safety spring 88, tho gauge-retracting movement` of the pull-rod 74@ can be performed without regard to lthe position of the needle-guide cam lever, the pawls 60 rising until their portions 90 engage the shoulder at the lower edge of the heel 92 and being checked in their upward travel, while the spring 88 permits continued movement of the pull-rod, the spring being compressed and storing up energy which serves to carry the pawls upward on their `usual course and to retract the'bacl gauge from the work as soon as the needle-guide cam-lever moves its heel 92 out of their way. This latter movement occurs just as the machine comes to rest.

The back gauge 10 is always retracted a uniform distance from 'the surface of the shoe, regardless of vthe thickness of the work, since the pawls 60 are moved a uniform distance at each retracting action, and take hold r of their ratchet without lost motion at whatever point it may be brought to rest through:

Contact of the back gauge with the work.

j Through the novel design and combination ofk the parts, the yimproved back gaugemech-v anism brings `the back. gauge against the work.v

promptly vand positivel ,though lightly impelled. 1With this lightcned impact directed at 'the saineangle and falling at the same point on the wor-lr as the stroke'ot the needle, and practically simultaneously therewith,

the impact of the back gauge is made to blend` with `that of the needle, with the elimination" oi'"v all disturbance oit the work through pounding of. the back gauge and with added facility 'of manipulation resulting'from improved support of the shoe during the stitch- Vhat is claimed is:

f l.l An inseam shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a bach gauge, an larm supporting said back gauge cam operatedmeans to swing said arm toward and from the shoe, a ratchet mounted directly upon said arm,

a pawl having a fixed pivot engaging Withsaid v'ratchet to lock the back gauge' in proximity to the shoe-and meansfor-disengaging the pawl from the ratchet.

vr2'. An inseam shoe sewing machine having,fin combination, a curved needle, a back gauge, an arm pivotally supporting said back gauge with capacity to swing toward and from the shoek about a center eccentric to that of the needle, a guideway combined with the back gauge rfor causing the latter to follow the `path of the needle, ratchet means formed on said arm, and pawl means to lock the Vback gauge in proximity to the shoe and tolun'lcclz and retract it away from the shoe.

Sfin inseam shoe-sewing machine havtion comprising a back gauge, an armsupporting said back gauge'with capacity to swing toward and from the shoe, and'ratchets mounted directly upon said arm, said 0rganization being brought to rest by contact with the shoe, a` pawl, having a fixed pivot, to engage one of said ratchets to lock the backgauge in contact ,with the shoe, a pawl to engage another ratchet, and means for actuating said last mentionedpawl to retract the baclrgauge 'from the shoe.

fl. An inseamshoe sewing machine havlin combination',a back gauge organiZa-.

engaging said ratchet teeth, and means acting periodically to impart movement to said second pawl when engaged with the ratchet teeth to remove the back gauge from the shoe.

5. An inseam shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a back gauge, a swinging arm carrying said back gauge toward 5 and from the shoe, a guideway causing the back gauge to follow the path of the needle, ratchet teeth upon saidarm, a pawl engaging said ratchet teeth to lock the back gauge in 'proximity to the shoe, means acting periodically to disengage said pawl, a second pawl engaging said ratchet teeth, and means yieldingly acting to move said pawl bodily after its engagement with the ratchet teeth to carry the back gauge away from the shoe. 6. An inseam shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a back gauge, an arm supporting said back gauge with capacity to swing toward and from the work, and means for retracting the back gauge periodically a fixed distance away irom the surface of the work, comprising a ratchet mounted directly upon said arm, a pawl engaging said ratchet, and a cam-actuated lever imparting bodily movement to said pawl.

7. An inseam shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a back gauge, a swinging arm carrying said back gauge toward and from the shoe, a ratchet upon said arm, a pawl engaging said ratchet, a cam-actuated arm moving said pawl bodily to carry the back gauge away from the shoe, and a second cam-actuated arm disengaging said pawl to let the back gauge swing toward the shoe.

8. An inseam shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a back gauge, a swinging arm carrying said back gauge Atoward and from the sho-e, a ratchet upon said arm, a pawl engaging tlierewitln'and means yieldingly acting to move said pawl bodily in a direction to carry the back gauge away from the shoe.

9. An inseam shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a back gauge, a swinging arm carrying said back gauge toward and from the shoe, a vratchet upon said arm, a pawl engaging therewith, a bell-crank carrying said pawl. to cause it to retract the back gauge, a sleeve upon said bell-crank, a pullrod sliding within said sleeve, a cam-actuated lever imparting endwise movement to said pull-rod, and a spring confined between the end of the pull-rod and said sleeve, through which actuation is imparted to retract t-he back gauge with capacity for postponement if necessary.

10. An inseam shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a back gauge, a swinging arm carrying said back gauge toward and from the shoe, means for locking and unlocking the back gauge in proximity to the shoe, and means for retracting the back gauge away from the shoe approximately simultaneously with the unlocking operation including a yielding connection permitting a postponement of the retraction.

ll. An inseam shoe sewing machine having, in combination., a back gauge, supporting means thereforadapted to carry the back gauge toward and from the shoe,'means acting upon said supporting means to lock the back gauge in proximity to the shoe, and means for unlocking and at the same time yieldingly retracting the back gauge away from the shoe.

l2. A shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a back gauge, a power operated oscillating member and an actuating linkage connecting said back gauge and power operated member, comprising a one-way ldriving ratchet connection and a resilientmeans, said power operated member acting on the ratchet connection through the resilient means. 95

13. A shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a back gauge, a power operated oscillating member, and an actuating linkage connecting the back gauge and the power operated member, comprising a one-way V00 driving ratchet connection and a spring arranged between the power operated member and the ratchet connection to yield upon resistance to movement of the back gauge.

14. A shoe sewing machine having, in com- 105 bination, aback gauge, a power operated oscillating member and an actuating linkage connecting the back gauge and power 0perated member, comprising a one-way driving ratchet arranged to .retract the back 11o gauge from the shoe and to slide idly in the other direction and a resilient means positioned to yield upon resistance to retraction of t-he back gauge.

In testimony whereof l have signed my 115 name to this specification.

ERASTUS E. VINKLEY. 

